Never call me a princess
by parapentistria4ever
Summary: Emma has an unpredicted reaction when her father calls her "princess". A lot of Charming feelings. Rated T for some scenes of abuse,mostly verbal one. It's my first story I would love to read your opinion


**Hello everyone! This is my first fanfic story. I love the Charmings, so here is a one-shot story about them. It takes place sometime after Neverland. English is not my first language, so please excuse my mistakes… Enjoy!**

**Unfortunately I don't own Once Upon A Time, I'm just a huge fan**

Emma was sitting in the diner waiting for her father to join her

-"How are you feeling today princess?"

At her father words, Emma froze to her place

-"How did you call me?"

-"princess!" he said with a loving glare at his eyes

**-"**I'm nothing close to a princess"

-" Oh! Come on, you know that you technically are one…Besides, I've been waiting too long to call you like that, honey. After all we've been through and eventually managed to bond, I'm so glad that you are MY princess" (he goes next to her)

Emma suddenly stands up and leaves the diner yelling "I'm not a princess!"

At her way out she bumps into Neal and Henry, who look at her worried and try to understand what upset her

-"What happened? I haven't seen her so angry and panicked since Neverland. And that look on her eyes…"said Neal

-"Did you have a quarrel?" asked Henry

-"I really can't understand. I got into the diner to have breakfast with her, as we have planned and she was calm. We started talking and I called her princess and expressed my feelings for having bonded with her. Then she became a different person."

-"You called her WHAT? Oh! No!" says Neal and runs out of the diner. Charming follows him, still oblivious to what he had done wrong

-"Hey! What happened?"

-"Oh pal, you should have never called her_ princess_"

-"But why? She is one! What's wrong with being a princess after all?"

-"For you it's normal, but for her….it's…it's a long story"

-"It has to do with her past, doesn't it? What happened?"

-"It's not my story to share"

-"Please, she's my daughter. I love her more than anything in this world. I want to know everything about her"

-"I know, I get that, I truly do. However she'll be furious if I reveal you anything with regards to her past. I'm sure that she will explain everything to you, when she is ready."

-"If she ever is…"

-"She will be. She just needs time. Now, please, take care of Henry I have to find her"

Neal finds Emma sitting in her office, lost in her thoughts with eyes red from the crying

-"Hi there" he says, not knowing how to open a proper discussion. He knows she hurts

-" Hey! Where's Henry?"

-"I left him with your dad"

-"ok"

-"Em? Talk to me….I am here for you"

-"About what?"

-"I saw you leaving diner earlier"

-"It's ok"

-"No, it isn't. What happened Em?"

-"Whatever happened in the past has to stay there"

-"No, it doesn't. It still haunts you"

-"End. Of. Discussion."

-"No, Em. You know that you are not alone anymore. Your parents and your son love you so much. I know that things are complicated between us, but I adore you. You deserve to be really happy, but you can achieve that only by admitting the truth. You have to tell them what happened. Don't leave them in the dark"

-"I can't. It hurts too much. They will hurt too and I don't want that"

-"So, is it better for them to be ignorant? They want to know everything about you Emma. They really love you and nothing can change that"

-"That's true!" says Charming as he enters the office

-"Sorry, I can't" says Emma and leaves. She gets into her car, but she doesn't have the energy to drive. Tears start to wet her cheeks. Memories are becoming more and more vivid. Images that she wanted to forget are being shown in front of her

_Flashback_

_A little skinny blond girl washes the dishes when she hears loud voices. She understands that her foster "dad" is drunk again. He enters violently into the kitchen and shouts at her "Go away you dirty little thing!" _

_Emma moves away, but he catches her from the hair "Where do you think you are going? Who is supposed to deal with this mess?" He says showing the dishes_

_-"But you told me too" Emma starts saying with a scarred voice_

_-"Shut up princess!"_

_Emma starts again her chore. A tear escapes her eye that doesn't go unnoticed by her foster dad_

_-"Are you unhappy princess?"_

_-"Sorry"_

_-"Yes, you should be sorry. You are worthless. Nobody wants you princess. You should be thankful for having me"_

_-"I am"_

_-"Don't mock me princess! I swear, you are nothing better than a meal ticket. Now, finish the dishes. I can't stand seeing you"_

_Emma complies, finishes the dishes and starts leaving the room_

_-"Not so quickly, princess .I need to drink something"_

_Emma reaches the cupboard where he keeps the alcohol bottles, but there's nothing left_

_-"There is nothing here" she says not daring to look him_

_-"What? What happened to my bottles? You drank them, didn't you?"_

_-"I'm 8 years old"_

_-"That's the worst excuse I've ever heard! Now you'll see what happens to awful liars like you princess" _

_He beats her everywhere with his hands and everything he can find useful for his purpose. Emma at first tries to protect herself, but quite quickly she stops. She knows it's useless. No one's there to save her. It's not the first time. She is alone and worthless. She doesn't matter. No one cares for her. She is an orphan who should have died when she was thrown at the side of the road. When her foster dad thinks she learnt her lesson, leaves the house and she goes to her room with a lot of trying and pain everywhere. For one more night she cries herself to sleep. Thankfully, the next day a social worker pays an unexpected visit, notices the bruises that cover the most of the parts of Emma's body and she removes it from that house. The hell later continues, but Emma doesn't care. She has already lost hope. She is alone, unwanted and unloved. _

It's night when she returns home, emotionally exhausted. She could never imagine the impact a pet name would have on her. She was supposed to be raised as a real princess in a magical kingdom by parents who really love her and would sacrifice even their lives for her. She enters home wishing her parents have gone to bed, but as she opens the door their worried faces are revealed to her.

-"Emma, I'm really sorry. Words can express my regret. I have never meant to upset you" Charming tells her

-"It's ok. It isn't your fault"

-"I feel like it is. We love you, Emma, we want the best for you. However, we don't know how we could be successful parents without knowing your past and what you've been through"

-"That's right, honey" Snow adds "You can talk to us. You are not alone. Not anymore. We will always be here for you"

-"There's nothing to talk about"

-"Please, honey. Your father told me about your small outburst"

-"I just can't stand people calling me princess. That's all"

-"I got that, however I feel there's more to the story and Neal's reaction when I told him what happened proved me right"

-"Did Neal tell you?"

-"No, Emma" Snow says as she approaches her daughter "But he was there, as well as Henry was. It is up to you to talk to us. Please, honey, we might help you. Let us be your parents"

-"You can't help me. Past can't be undone"

-"You are right, but we can build a promising future" Charming says getting closer to Emma

-"But we have to deal with the past to be successful" Snow adds

-"If you really loved me, you would understand" an angry Emma says heading to her room. She reaches her son's bed. Only he would calm her down, however he isn't there. Panicked she goes downstairs

-"Where the hell is my son?"

-"Calm down, sweetheart, he is with Neal" Snow says

-"Why?"

-"He wanted to let us talk"

-"What? Why would he do that?"

-"He was there, Emma, he knows that you need to talk to us and that his presence would make things more difficult for you" Charming says and he goes next to her. He takes her hand in his and leads her to the sofa

-" How about a cup of hot chocolate?" a willing Snow offers

-"Oh! That's unfair! You know I can't resist that"

The three of them laugh at Emma's response. Charming hugs her and whispers in her ear that they love her. Later, with cups of hot chocolate with extra cinnamon for the women of the family in hands, they start the difficult discussion. Emma tells them everything about that specific foster dad. She doesn't mention the other families that hurt her too. She can't deal with all the stories yet. However it is easier than she thought. Her parents look at her lovingly with watery eyes. When she ends her narration, they both hug her tightly. Emma thinks she couldn't feel more loved and secure.

-"So, where is my sword?" Charming says angrily as he suddenly stands up

-"What?" both Emma and Snow ask

-"I'm going to kill him!"

-"Trust me, you can't kill whoever hurt me in the past, even if I wanted you to. There is a border restriction"

-"Honey, I want to make things right"

-"So, do I, sweetheart" Snow tells "We love you! You are the most precious person to us. There are not enough words to describe our feelings nor how sorry we are for what you had to go through"

-"But now we are a family and we have all the time to make up for the past right?" Charming asks

-"Please, Emma, let us be here for you. I thought we made a progress after Neverland, didn't we?" Her mother says with her eyes full of concern and worry

-"We did. It's …just….look. I know that I'm not alone anymore, that I have a family and I completely understand why you chose to send me through the wardrobe. But I can't change the way I feel every time something reminds me of the past. I don't want to feel like an orphan anymore. I truly don't. But I can't help it. I'm sorry

Snow hugs her and replies "Emma, we understand. There is nothing to apologize for. We are the ones who are sorry. Because of our decision and the curse you had to be alone and feel like an orphan and especially because of my big mouth"

-"Snow, you know that it wasn't your fault" Charming was quick to reply "Cora is the one to blame for and Regina just couldn't and unfortunately can't see the truth. But, Emma, your mother is right. We are sorry, You are an amazing woman, who despite everything she's been through, managed to survive and become stronger with a heart full of beautiful emotions" He sits again next to her, he caresses her back and she leans her head on his shoulder

-"Whatever. I'll try to be more open towards you. As Mary Margaret told me in the nursery I have to get used to it. You know that my walls have already started to fall down don't you?"

-"We know, honey, and we are delighted for that" her father says with a calm voice

-"And we want you to always remember that you matter the world to us and to your son and to so many other people despite what that monster told you" Snow says taking Emma's arm in hers

-"Thank you" Emma answers looking at both her parents

-"I think it's time to call it a night. We all need some rest" Snow tells after some minutes of silence

-"Your mother is right. Goodnight Emma, I love you"

-"Goodnight, honey, I love you"

-"Goodnight guys, thanks for everything, I love both of you too."

Each of them go to their room. Snow and Charming rest in the best in a complete silence. Both of them have Emma's story on their minds.

-"I wonder when we become mum and dad" Snow breaks the silence

-"We've been once"

-"Yes, but that was when we were going to die"

-"I'm sure we'll be again. For now, let's be happy that she revealed a significant part of her past

-"I am afraid of what else she had suffered"

-"Me too. But you know what? Our daughter managed to survive and we should be thankful for that"

-"If only Regina…"

-"Says the woman that keeps on saving her"

-"Well, I killed her mother"

-"And she killed your father and took away your daughter and did countless awful things to you"

-" I know. But she is Henry's mum too and you saw her at Neverland. She tries too hard. I've always believed there's good inside her and now that she is in love again she could be the unselfish girl who saved me. However when I think of our baby…"

-"Shhh…Don't try to overthink it. Let's focus on how we are going to be the parents that Emma deserves. I want the best for her.

-" I know exactly what you are talking about. Maybe now that Neal is back, she has her chance in true love"

-"Oh"

-"Don't be like that! He's Henry's father. Not to mention that he was there for her, when we weren't."

-"And then he left her pregnant in the jail"

-"He didn't know that and he did what he thought it was best for her. He knew how much she wanted to find her parents"

-"You sound like we owe him a _thank you_"

-"I didn't say that. I just believe he really loves Emma and that our daughter loves him too."

-" Then why they aren't together?"

-"Emma is hurt and she has trust issues. We've just witnessed that. But by keeping in touch with him, she'll let herself fall in love with him again"

-"As she will let herself feel like our daughter"

-"Do you know how much I love you, especially when you keep your hope up?"

-"I love you, Snow. Things will get better for all of us"

-"Goodnight Charming"

-"Goodnight Snow"

THE END

**Let me tell you, that I don't support a special ship. I am just obsessed with the Charmings. Please share your thoughts with me. I hope it wasn't too tiring or boring. What's more feel free to share your view concerning last night's episode… So many Charmings' feelings. Have fun oncers! **


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